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SARASOTA, Fla. - Famed daredevil Nik Wallenda glided 500 feet across a wire suspended 200 feet above the ground on Tuesday, wowing several thousand people below in his hometown of Sarasota.

SEVARE, Mali - Timbuktu, the fabled desert city where retreating Muslim extremists destroyed ancient manuscripts, was a centre of Islamic learning hundreds of years before Columbus landed in the Americas.

WASHINGTON - The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts is planning its first major expansion since it opened in 1971 as a "living memorial" to President John F.

FERRARA, Italy - I came to Italy to test a French adage by way of an American writer, Mark Twain. "Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose." The more things change, the more they remain the same.

NEW ORLEANS - New Orleans has celebrated plenty of milestones on its slow road to recovery from Hurricane Katrina, but arguably none is bigger than hosting its first Super Bowl since the 2005 storm left the city in shambles.

WASHINGTON - Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, the only Republican still in President Barack Obama's first-term Cabinet, said Tuesday he plans to leave the Obama administration.

ROME - Rome's 18th-century Trevi Fountain, famed as a setting for the film "La Dolce Vita," is getting a €2.18 million ($2.9 million) restoration courtesy of the Fendi fashion house.

BILLINGS, Mont.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.

FREDERICTON - With a new year underway many of us are thinking ahead to vacation time but, with today's economic pressures, it can be difficult to set aside the cash for a big trip. The goal is to have an enjoyable vacation without breaking the bank.